Are certain people making life difficult for other people at work? SME Academy offers a solution.

Problem behaviour at work affects everyone. It affects the people on the receiving end and it also affects those who are bullying and argumentative in the first place.

But how do you deal with it?

The first step is to take a pro-active stance, take command and control it in a positive way. It used to be that punishment was the only way forward and indeed some form of disciplinary action may be required. But prevention and support should also be provided, along with a strong and positive management style that will go a long way towards preventing such occurrences happening in the future.

Both coaching and mentoring have led to positive changes in such individuals, as they are offered practical and supportive solutions to change the behaviour that has so affected them and their colleagues. While it will take time to get back to a workplace which is more positive in nature, if you can provide leadership that everyone looks to for advice and support you will be setting the stage for that to gradually evolve.

It can be a tricky balance to present a face of management that is both firm yet supportive in the right ways, but it is vital to do so. You should also keep a close eye on how things are progressing and be prepared to meet with members of staff who have concerns or issues about any kind of detrimental behaviour they are experiencing at work.

Many businesses are now turning to neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) to produce better results over both the short and the long term. NLP is designed to help you understand the behaviours of others from both audio and visual signs, and can therefore help in two ways. Firstly the offending member of staff will learn how their behaviour affects others in a detrimental way, and secondly they will also learn how to make positive changes that will help to eradicate the problem behaviour altogether.

As far as your role as a manager is concerned it is vital to ensure that you learn to identify problem behaviour as soon as it arises, rather than finding out about it from staff members. By providing a hands on management style you can learn more about how your team works and thus get to know your team a lot better than perhaps you do now.

By looking at long term solutions to problem behaviour rather than quick fixes, you will find that your team works in a more harmonious way as a result.

SME Academy offers a range of Coaching and Mentoring packages that can be adapted to your needs. Call us on 020 7939 9910 or click here for more information about coaching

© Copyright Hannah McNamara 2010

Do I need a small business coach, a mentor or a life coach?

SME Academy in London offers all three services which are explained below.

The terms small business coach or business mentor are often used interchangeably within the business world, but what do people really mean when they talk about small business coaching or business mentoring? And how are they different from executive coaching or life coaching?

Countless articles and text books tell you that mentors use coaching skills and that coaches can act as a mentor – not much help is it?

The reason for this is it is actually very difficult when you’re a business coach or mentor NOT to utilise both techniques because when you’re working with a client on building their business you often have to be a supporter or coach, an experienced guide or mentor and also to provide one on one training in business skills and soft skills such as leadership skills, communication skills or negotiation skills.

The best business coaches are able to help you to:

• think strategically and so can assist with business planning and strategy
• work out how to increase business through offering guidance on sales and marketing techniques
• be a better manager or leader by helping you with communication skills, dealing with difficult people, confidence and assertiveness
• manage your stress levels through more effective time management, delegation and giving you back a sense of work/life balance

However, not all business coaching organisations can offer this in one person and if you go to a specialist life coach they might be able to help you with the soft skills and life planning aspects but won’t be able to offer you guidance on building your business because they typically use what’s called a ‘non-directive’ approach, i.e. they won’t offer advice or suggestions but help you to draw the answers out from within yourself (assuming of course that at some level you DO know the answer!).

So as a potential user of small business coaching or business mentoring services how on earth do you find a suitable coach?

Ask around and be prepared to devote some time to talking to a few suitable business coaches. Don’t just ‘jump into bed’ with the first person you speak to (unless they meet all of your criteria) and have an initial discussion with them to work out if the two of you can work together.

At SME Academy we always offer a free initial consultation either by phone or in person to talk about your needs and then we recommend the person on our team who fits your requirements. On-going packages of coaching time are then arranged with you as required. You can view a sample of the standard packages available at www.smeacademy.co.uk/courses/business-coaching-mentoring/

To arrange a free no-obligation consultation please call Hannah McNamara at SME Academy on 020 7939 9910 or +44 20 7939 9910 or contact us via our contact page.

SME Academy is based in central London (SE1) close to London Bridge station and Borough station which is a short walk across the bridge from the City of London and Bank/Monument stations.

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